Assessment of Freshcut Fruit Handling and Vending in the Central Business Area of Koforidua, Ghana
Keywords:
employment, handling practices, local freshcut fruits, vendorsAbstract
Local freshcut fruit vending create employment and also facilitate fruit consumption to promote public health. However, handling of the fruits and unhygienic practices can affect the quality and safety of freshcut fruits. This study was conducted to assess the handling practices and vending of freshcut fruits in Koforidua Ghana, using questionnaires administered to 54 randomly selected freshcut fruit vendors. The results showed that the enterprise is dominated by females (92.6%) and majority (75.9%) of respondents is literate. Many (72%) of the vendors have engaged in freshcut within five years (range <1-5) years indicating freshcut as recent value addition activity. Fruits are sourced from wholesalers (48.1%) and farmers (40.7%) and included pineapple, watermelon, mango and pawpaw. The main source of water for washing the fruits was pipe borne water (64.8%) and no sanitizers were added to the water. A total of 85.1% of the vendors used transparent LDPE bag as primary packaging. Selling containers during vending included metal tray (59.3%), safe (glass box) 20.4% and unsold freshcut fruits were kept in either refrigerator (25.9%) or in store-room (9.3%). Vendors (74.9%) had no other sources of income. Majority (81.5%)) of the vendors had no professional training related to safe preparation and processing of freshcut fruits. Vending sites included roadside (streets), bus/taxi station and market. Freshcut fruit vending is a local enterprise that provide income for the women engaged in the trade. It is recommended that professional training be provided on good hygienic practices of handling to improve the quality and safety of the freshcut fruits for consumers and enhance the business.
References
Ghana Statistical Service (2012).Ghana Living Standards Survey Report of the Fifth Round.
MOFA-SRID (Ministry of Food and Agriculture Statistical Research and Information Directorate)(2011).Agriculture in Ghana, Facts and Figures.
International Fresh-Cut Produce Association (IFPA) (2004). “The International Fresh-Cut Industry. International Fresh-Cut Produce Association.
U.S. Food and Drug Administration (USFDA). 2000). Presentation by J. Gorny, IFPA, at the “Public Meeting on Use of the Term‘Fresh’ on Foods Processed with Alternative Technologies.†Chicago, IL, July 21, 2000.
FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization) (2012).Street food vending in West African cities; Potential and Challenges.FAO regional Office for Africa.
Obuobie, E., Keraita, B., Danso,G., Amoah,P., Cofie, O.O.,Rachid-Sally, L. D. (2006) Irrigated urban vegetable production in Ghana: Characteristics, benefits and risks. IWMI-RAF-CPWF, Accra, Ghana:IWMI, 150pp.
Bendeck, M. A., Tefft, J.,Seki, R., Nicolo, G.F. (2013). Street food vending in urban Ghana: moving from an informal to a formal sector | Feature Article of Saturday, 23 November 2013. URLhttp://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/features/artikel.php?ID=292956Last accessed 11.07.2015.
Rico, D., Martı Ìn-Diana, A.B., Barat, J.M., Barry-Ryan, C., (2007) Extending and measuring the quality of fresh-cut fruit and vegetables: a review, Trends in Food Science & Technology, Vol. 18, p.373-386.
Cardinale, E., Claude, J.D., Tall, F.,Gueye, E.F., Salva, G. (2005) Risk factors for contamination of ready-to-eat street vended poultry dishes in Dakar, Senegal. International Journal of FoodMicrobiology 103, 157–165.
Sapers, G. M. (2003). Washing and sanitizing raw materials for minimally processed fruit and vegetable products. In J. S. Novak, G. M. Sapers, & V. K. Juneja (Eds.), Microbial safety of minimally processed foods (pp. 221e253). Boca
Raton, New York: CRCPress.
Chukuezi, C. O. (2010). Food safety and hygienic practices of street food vendors in Owerri, Nigeria.Studies in Sociology of Science, 1, 50-57.
Essuman, K. M.(1990). Local packaging of foods in Ghana.Food and Nutrition Bulletin. Vol.12 No.1. United Nations University Press.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
- Papers must be submitted on the understanding that they have not been published elsewhere (except in the form of an abstract or as part of a published lecture, review, or thesis) and are not currently under consideration by another journal published by any other publisher.
- It is also the authors responsibility to ensure that the articles emanating from a particular source are submitted with the necessary approval.
- The authors warrant that the paper is original and that he/she is the author of the paper, except for material that is clearly identified as to its original source, with permission notices from the copyright owners where required.
- The authors ensure that all the references carefully and they are accurate in the text as well as in the list of references (and vice versa).
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
- The journal/publisher is not responsible for subsequent uses of the work. It is the author's responsibility to bring an infringement action if so desired by the author.
